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Activated Magazine No.7 [Traditional Chinese]
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By George Dunbar
NE MORNING, A MECHANIC who has worked on our van from time to time knocked on our door in Korat, Thailand. He was very sad and very mad at the same time. He said that his wife had left him for another man a few days earlier. Now she wanted the house and this and that. The man had been drinking heavily, and he didn’t know what to do or who to talk with. He had a gun in his car, and said he wanted to go and kill his wife and her boyfriend, then kill himself. He didn’t really understand what had brought him to our gate; he had just been driving around aimlessly, then suddenly he found himself at our house. The Lord had brought him to us, of course. My wife and I tried to calm him down and help him see that killing anyone wasn’t the answer. “As impossible as this must seem right now, it would be better to just let her go,” we advised him. “Don’t try to take judgment into your own hands. Leave that to God. He knows what’s best for everyone concerned.” It took a while, but the man finally calmed down. Before he left, he prayed with us to receive Jesus, and we prayed together for the Lord’s solution to his problem. Some days later he came to us again for advice. His wife had come back and had asked him to forgive her and give her another chance. All of his friends told him not to take her back. What should he do? We told him that the decision was his, of course, but that the Lord always forgives us for our mistakes and sins, and then He gives us another chance to do things right. Our mechanic, by now a dear friend, was very happy to hear that, as he really loved his wife and already knew in his heart that that was the right thing to do. “Jesus and you have changed my life!” he exclaimed as he left. Isn’t it wonderful how He does that?
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Q: I’ve read in the Bible and often heard people say, “God is love,” or “God loves you,” but if that’s so, why does He allow so much suffering in the world? He’s all-powerful, right? So why doesn’t He put a stop to things like disease and poverty and war and natural disasters?
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early all of us have asked those questions at one time or another. The answer hinges on two basic truths: First, most suffering is not due to so-called natural causes. In other words, it’s not according to the way God intended for things to work; it’s not His doing. It’s man’s doing. Second, He has given us freedom of choice, and this plays a big part in His plan for us. He didn’t create us as robots, but with decision-making abilities and the need to exercise them. He put us here to make choices between right and wrong, good and evil. So when it comes right down to it, most suffering is the result of people’s choices. Sometimes people deliberately inflict suffering on others, and sometimes the suffering is a byproduct of selfish choices or indifference—choosing not to make choices that could avoid or alleviate the suffering. But either way, people are to blame. God doesn’t approve of choices that harm others or us, but if He were to step in every time we made a bad choice, He’d have to put an end to freedom of choice altogether. Why do people make choices that hurt others?—Because they put themselves first and choose their own ways over God and His loving ways. God has given each of us a conscience—an inborn sense of right and wrong. In the Bible He also gives us the solution to suffering and all the other ills we bring upon ourselves. It’s a solution that’s so simple it can be summed up in one word: love. “Love does no harm to a neighbor” (Romans 13:10). God tries to guide us into doing what’s loving and right, but He won’t force us. Now let’s take a closer look at that question, starting with war. Wars are the ultimate manifestation of man’s selfishness, greed, pride, and competitive spirit. The Bible puts it this way: “From whence come wars and fightings
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among you? Come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members?” (James 4:1-2 KJV). God hates war, but again, to put an end to war He would have to put an end to freedom of choice. And what about hunger and poverty? God did not create this inequality in the world’s wealth or standard of living. He has provided more than enough food and other natural resources so that no one needs to go hungry or be deprived of other basic needs. The world can produce enough food to feed its expanding population. While some famines are caused by drought or other natural disasters, most starvation today could be avoided were it not for man’s selfishness and inhumanity. War, embargoes, government corruption, and economic oppression are all to blame. While innocent children starve, some rich nations destroy millions of tons of food in order to keep prices artificially high. Then there is the health question. If God is so righteous, why does He allow sickness? Much of the suffering brought about by sickness is also man-made. We disobey God’s health rules and eat ourselves sick on processed junk food made from genetically altered ingredients and laced with chemical preservatives. We also voluntarily make ourselves sick by smoking, drinking in excess, and taking prescription and illegal drugs that cause cancer and heart disease or harm our minds and bodies in other ways. The stress and rush of our unnatural modern lifestyle also contributes to many psychosomatic illnesses such as severe headaches, stomach ulcers, and heart trouble. Possibly the biggest question of all is why God allows so many innocent people to be killed by natural disasters like floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, etc., over which man has little or no control. How you interpret these events depends on whether you believe in a loving, righteous God and an afterlife or not. If there were no afterlife, then natural disasters are a travesty against justice. But to those who have faith in God and implicit confidence in His love and mercy and righteousness and justice, as well as belief in a better life after this one, there is an answer: God, in His mercy, sometimes sees fit to end people’s suffering once and for all by taking them out of this world to the far better one He has waiting for all those who love Him, where all wrongs will be made right and people will be rewarded according to their works, whether they be good or evil. It’s also reassuring to know that it won’t always be like this. The day is coming when Jesus Christ will return to put an end to the senseless suffering man inflicts on his fellow man. Then and only then, under the all-powerful rule and reign of Christ and God’s children, will there be peace and plenty for all, with no more suffering, no more hunger, no more starvation, no more poor, and no more war! •
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BEAUTY FOR ASHES
We used to sing a little song about the Lord: He gives me joy in place of sorrow, He gives me love that casts out fear, He gives me sunshine for my shadow, And beauty for ashes dear. In order to bring forth the sweetness, there has to be some suffering. To bring about the beauty of the flame, something must go to ashes. Blessings come from suffering--“beauty for ashes” (Isaiah 61:3). This is borne out so well in Hebrews 12: 11, which says: “Now no chastening seems joyful for the present, but painful: nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.” It’s like a giant hand taking a honeycomb and squeezing it—and out comes the honey. Or it’s like when Moses smote the rock: The rock received a fierce blow, but out came the water (Exodus 17:1-7). The heart of stone has to be broken before the water [of God’s Spirit] can flow out to refresh the people. It’s like a beautiful flower that’s pressed and crushed, but out comes the perfume. Or like the beautiful music that comes from the throat of the bird, almost as though it’s in pain, yet it comes forth with song. Even though the bird’s song may be sad, it’s so sweet. The groans are not murmurs, but songs of praise and thanksgiving to God—a sad, sweet song! As the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley once wrote, “Our sweetest songs are those that tell of saddest thoughts!” Praise is the voice of faith! We could never appreciate the light unless we had once been in darkness. We couldn’t appreciate health unless we had been sick. We can’t appreciate joy until we’ve known sorrow. We can’t appreciate God’s mercy until we’ve known the Devil’s justice. (Prayer:) Lord, help us not to quench that beautiful song, even if it’s sad, to thank You in spite of the sorrow. Help us to be willing to go through whatever we need to in order to give forth Your sweetness, Your fragrance, Your beauty, Your song, Your refreshing waters. Out of what seems like defeat come some of Your greatest victories! “[God] comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God” (2 Corinthians 1:4). 14
“BE STILL, and know that I am God,” and “In quietness and confidence shall be your strength” (Psalm 46:10; Isaiah 30:15). And Jesus practiced what the Bible preaches. Several times in the Gospels it says that Jesus rose before the break of day, before His disciples were awake, in order to get alone with His Father and get His instructions for the day. At other times He left the multitudes and His disciples and went off to a secluded place to pray. If even Jesus had to do it, how much more we need to do it!
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OD TELLS US,
We all need quiet times with the Lord—when we step out of our busy routines to rest our minds and spirits, commit our problems and cares to Him in prayer, get strengthened by His Word, and be refreshed by a few moments of sweet fellowship with Him. In fact, many of His promises are contingent on our doing just that. “Come to Me … and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28); “Call to Me, and I will … show you great and mighty things” (Jeremiah 33:3); “Abide in Me … and [what you ask] shall be done for you” (John 15:7). If you will set aside 10 or 15 minutes each day— more would be even better—for “quiet time” with the Lord, you will find that your days will go a lot smoother. It doesn’t have to be at a set place or time, or follow any particular ritual. Vocabulary Just stop what you’re doing and 1. confidence: think about the Lord. Share your 2. disciple: heart with Him, and listen to His still 3. instruction: small voice in your heart give you 4. multitude: the answers, encouragement, and 5. secluded: strength you need to face your day. “Those who wait on the Lord shall 6. routine: renew their strength; they shall 7. contingent: mount up with wings like eagles, 8. smooth: they shall run and not be weary, they 9. ritual: shall walk and not faint” (Isaiah 40: 10. encouragement: 31). • 15
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